Heather Manning
Heather Manning is a college student who was allegedly raped by a fraternity student named Conner Howell. Background After arriving at Hudson University, Manning went on a date with the hockey team captain, Brian Mackey. When they got back to his dorm room, they started kissing, but Manning passed out from the alcohol she had consumed. When she woke up, Mackey's fraternity brother, Conner Howell, was raping her. After the assault, Manning ran out of the fraternity house when the other frat boys throw beer cups at her while calling her a slut. Manning then reported the rape to a zealous college professor named Jessica Dillon, who said that she could have been raped by multiple men when she passed out. When she reported the incident to college administration, The college president, Roberts, questioned Manning to the point where she felt too intimidated to press charges, and the case was dropped. A few days later, one of the frat boys tried to humiliate Manning by giving her the underwear she wore on the night of the assault. Eventually, Manning reported the rape to a a popular TV show called "America's Worst Crimes", and was encouraged to exaggerate what happened to her by saying she was gang-raped by four of the frat boys. Devastating Story When she appears on the show and is interviewed by reporter Skip Peterson, Manning, while keeping her identity hidden and using the name "Jane", tells him that she was gang-raped. As a result, national attention is brought to the epidemic of rapes on college campuses. At a rape rally where other students reveal how they had been assaulted and their stories not believed, Manning reveals herself as "Jane". Manning and Dillon then appear at the precinct, where they tell Sergeant Benson and Detective Rollins how Manning had been assaulted, after which the SVU detectives bring the frat boys in for questioning and eventually arrest them. Manning continues to tell others that she was gang-raped, but during a press conference, she says that she was raped by six frat boys instead of four. Benson, who saw the press conference, questions her about the inconsistencies and says it would be best if she stopped speaking to the press. Manning refuses, saying she has become the face of a movement, but she also mentions that she scheduled a television interview later with Anderson Cooper and Rachel Maddow. It is later revealed that one of the men she accused of raping her was playing a soccer game in West Virginia at the time of the assault. As a result, Manning and Dillon are brought into A.D.A. Barba's office, and Dillon is taken away by Rollins so Manning can be questioned by Barba. During Barba's questioning, it is revealed that Manning's rape was partially fabricated. After the truth behind the assault is revealed, Howell and the frat boys who were arrested are all released. Manning then returns to the precinct and apologizes to Benson for what happened. She then insists that she was still raped by Howell and that Dillon had pressured her into going public with the story, but Benson tells Manning that there is nothing that can be done anymore. ( : "Devastating Story") Category:Rape Victims Category:Females Category:SVU Characters Category:Harassment Victims